Outdoor Swimmer, the magazine for outdoor swimmers by outdoor swimmers, has partnered with Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine, London’s flagship outdoor swimming event brought to you by the team behind the Virgin Money London Marathon and RideLondon.

Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine is a one-day open water swimming festival held on Saturday 18 September. Organised by London Marathon Events, it takes place in the heart of the capital at Hyde Park’s beautiful Serpentine.

Outdoor Swimmer will be creating bespoke training plans to support swimmers of all abilities to get ready to make the most of their Serpentine experience. The Outdoor Swimmer Team will be available in virtual Q&As to provide expert advice and answer any questions in the build-up to the 2021 event, and will be there on the day for a special ‘meet the team’ event.

Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine participants can also take advantage of an exclusive subscription offer to Outdoor Swimmer so they can explore the best outdoor swimming has to offer.

Jonathan Cowie, Editor of Outdoor Swimmer, said: “Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine is an amazing opportunity to swim in one of open water swimming’s most iconic venues – right in the heart of our capital city. It is one of my favourite swims, so I am thrilled that we are partnering with Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine to offer advice and training tips to help swimmers reach their potential and make the most of their swims. Whether you’re a first-timer or an experienced swimmer, this is a great event with a wonderful atmosphere.”

Hugh Brasher, Event Director for Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Outdoor Swimmer to the Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine family. Outdoor Swimmer brings you the best outdoor swimming has to offer, whether you’re new to the sport or an old hand looking for some training tips. It’s indispensable for anyone taking part in the event.”

Now in its fifth year, Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine is established as a must-do event in the open water swimming calendar. In addition to the rare opportunity to swim in the Serpentine lake, the event usually offers heated changing rooms, a dunk zone, pontoon start and finish, electronic timing, full water safety crew, and hot tubs.

While there may be some differences to the above because of social distancing this year, the event will see the same distance options as in previous years, including:

• Half-mile swim: taking in half a lap of the Serpentine, there is plenty of time to swim this distance at your leisure or just to try out an open water swimming event with an achievable, but for some still challenging, swim.
• One-mile swim: a classic distance in the world of open water swimming events. Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine takes place on the same course as the London 2012 Marathon Swimming Olympic event, with one full lap around the Serpentine making up the mile. This is the most popular of all the swim distances at Children with Cancer UK Swim Serpentine, with swimmers taking anything from 20 minutes through to one hour to complete it.
• Two-mile swim: for those who would like to test themselves with two full (1.6km) laps of the Serpentine. This distance is aimed at more experienced swimmers who may have already completed a mile open water swim.
• Super Six: already sold-out for 2021, the Super Six distance offers experienced swimmers the chance to complete six miles as one continuous swim.